Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Crawfish Etoufee

So many of you have asked me for my Crawfish Etoufee recipe, that I FINALLY took some pictures and wrote down the recipe to share with you the last time I made it =0) I love cajun food, but am not the best at making it - I have tried numerous etoufee recipes and they were either too complicated or just not good, so I kindof came up with my own just by taking different ingredients from different recipes, and well, I really like it and its pretty easy! Please let me know if you give it a try - would love to know how you like it! Sorry the pics aren't great - they were taken with my phone ha

Go ahead and start cooking your rice. Defrost your crawfish - you can either have already done this or I like to just take them out frozen and put in a strainer under cold water for a few minutes. Either way MAKE SURE YOU WASH THEM REALLY WELL WITH WATER, you do not want that fishy taste!! eek!

In a large pot melt your butter, once all melted, start adding the flour - a little at a time - to make a roux. Make sure to stir constantly while slowing adding the flour

You can NOT let the roux burn - if you see little brown specks it has burnt and you will need to start all over.
Once the roux is done, add in one cup of water and the onion/bell pepper - let your veggies cook for just a few minutes. Then add about half a can of cream of mushroom soup and 1 cup of milk. Stir until all blended. It should be looking like this...

Add a good tablespoon of the tomato paste - now depending on how thick you want it, you may want to add some more water - I added another cup. Slowly start seasoning with the Cayenne and Tonys - I did a heaping teaspoon of Cayenne and a few dashes of Tonys (be sure to do some taste testing!) Once you get it to the taste and consistency you want then reduce the heat to medium/low and let simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Finally add your crawfish (make sure they are washed and somewhat dry). Stirring frequently let your crawfish cook for about 15 minutes - don't let it boil - so keep it on medium/low. You do not want to overcook your crawfish because they will become chewy and that's disgusting.

Plate you up some rice and put the etoufee on top - oh heavens its so yum! And if you want some more spice give a few shakes of Tobasco or Louisana hot sauce.

* You can always add more water/milk/soup and tomato paste to make a larger serving. Also, you may substitute celery for the bell pepper (or have both).